Skip to main content

Apple’s new iPhone ad offers shooting tips for budding filmmakers

iPhone 12 Pro — Make movies like the movies

Budding filmmakers might want to take a quick look at Apple’s latest commercial (above) for the recently launched iPhone 12 Pro handset.

Recommended Videos

Titled Make Movies Like the Movies, the 70-second video blazes through a ton of short scenes showing different ways to nail a dramatic shot for your next movie effort.

While the ad touts the new iPhone’s ability to shoot, edit, and play back in Dolby Vision, the content is still useful for any amateur filmmaker — with any kind of smartphone or camera — who’s looking for inspiration on how to liven up their shots.

The ideas are mostly action-oriented and include moves like getting down low, using monopods and gimbals, tracking subjects on different wheel-based contraptions, and even utilizing miniature model cities for impressive “aerial” shots.

Apple’s video also shows how a dramatic viewpoint can also be achieved by attaching your handset to a fishing line and dropping it through a relatively small space, though if it’s the pricey iPhone 12 Pro you’re using, you may want to check that your AppleCare plan is still valid.

For more framing fun, this time in vertical format, check out another movie-style production released by Apple earlier this year.

The nine-minute film is the work of Academy Award-winning director Damien Chazelle — best known for hits such as La La Land and Whiplash — who used an iPhone 11 Pro to capture some compelling imagery for this Shot on iPhone commercial.

Of course, if your phone or camera is properly waterproof, you have even more ways to get creative, as London-based filmmaker Frederic van Strydonck demonstrates with this whimsical effort.

Trevor Mogg
Contributing Editor
Not so many moons ago, Trevor moved from one tea-loving island nation that drives on the left (Britain) to another (Japan)…
This one iPadOS 26 feature has me excited for the iPhone Fold
Semi-open state of a foldable iPhone concept

Samsung is set to launch the seventh generation of its Galaxy Z Fold book-style folding phone this Summer, but its biggest rival is yet to show its folding phone hand. Apple has long been expected to unveil an iPhone Fold, and the latest rumors suggest that it will launch next year.

I’ve used almost every folding phone released globally, with some exceptions for extremely obscure ones. While I've always been curious what an iPhone Fold would look like, I was fairly certain that Apple shouldn't build it, as I wasn’t sure they could deliver on one necessary feature.

Read more
Will my iPhone get iOS 26? Here’s every supported model
We've got the full list of iOS 26 supported devices - find out if you're getting the new iPhone update
iOS 26 features on a series of iPhone screens

Apple announced iOS 26 at WWDC 2025, and the new iPhone update comes with a fresh new 'Liquid Glass' look and plenty of features - and there are loads of iOS 26 supported devices, which is great news.

And no, you haven't missed a volley of updates since iOS 18 in 2024. Apple has skipped a bunch of numbers, so instead of giving us iOS 19 in 2025, we got iOS 26 alongside iPadOS 26, macOS 26, watchOS 26 and tvOS 26. In short, Apple's brought its operating system numbering into line. Nice.

Read more
3 big iOS 19 changes that I hope Apple reveals at WWDC 2025
iOS 19 sample logo.

We’re less than two days away from Apple’s big WWDC 2025 keynote, where the company will reveal new versions of each of its software platforms. One of the biggest changes this year is the expected shift from iOS 19 to iOS 26, with new versions of macOS, iPadOS, tvOS, watchOS, and visionOS also set to follow suit. We're also expecting to see the evolution of Apple Health, including a new AI doctor and Health subscription.

iOS 26, if it is to be named that, is expected to introduce one of the biggest evolutions in design for Apple software since the first iPhone was launched. Inspired by visionOS and the Apple Vision Pro, it’s expected to be a monumental redesign, but I hope that Apple also takes the time to make a few improvements.

Read more